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James J. Nawrocki

Partner

JAMES J. NAWROCKI is a Partner at GWC, where he plays a leading role in the firm’s Workers’ Compensation department.

Jim is a native Chicagoan and the son of a union teamster. He earned a BA in European History from DePaul University in 1982 and a Juris Doctorate from The John Marshall Law School in 1985. Jim proudly served in the US Navy JAG Corps from 1984 to 1990, distinguishing himself as the Navy’s top criminal defense counsel, 1989 – 1990. (One grateful client even named his firstborn son “James” following his acquittal.)

Jim joined GWC in 1995. He has been instrumental in successfully resolving some of the firm’s most challenging workers’ compensation cases. Jim’s natural habitat is the courtroom, where he has consistently litigated highly disputed and complex matters at both the trial and appellate levels.

Bar Admissions


  • Illinois State Bar
  • Workers’ Compensation Law Association

Education History


  • DePaul University, 1981
  • John Marshall Law School, 1985

Recognition


Practice Areas


Jim handles cases in Chicago, DuPage County, Macon County, Sangamon County, and Morgan County. He regularly represents clients and their families in the weightiest workers’ compensation claims, including those involving death, paralysis, spinal injuries, and complicated medical causation issues.

Jim belongs to the Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Association. He has been honored as a “Leading Lawyer” every year since 2013.

Jim chose to practice law because he wanted to help other people by being their advocate. He takes pride in making a positive difference in someone else’s life with his concentration, zeal, attention to detail, and willingness to go the distance in support of a case. Jim believes that lawyers are the key to keeping a civil society civil through orderly dispute resolution. He also relishes training young attorneys at GWC.

In his spare time, Jim volunteers for the Lesbian and Gay Bar Association, and he enjoys world travel.